When We Lose a Friend
By Ranolene, age 16, South Africa
What happens in life after we lose a close friend??I feel like I'm still dreaming and I'm going to wake up any minute and realize that my friend is still around. But the reality is she's not coming back. I won't get another chance to laugh at her jokes or to goof around with her.
It was Wednesday morning, 13 October 2011, and we went to school not realizing that we were about to be shocked. One of my friends from class had sadly passed away and left us with tears. We know she is probably in a better place, but at such a young age to die? Such beauty gone back to the creator? How do we overcome our grief? Our loss of a loved one?
Well, my way to deal with my grief is by being comforted by my family and friends. And most of all, to cry my heart out. It's better to let it out than to bottle it forever. I found that it's okay to cry. It's okay to share your emotions with strangers.
Today I might have lost a friend, but I never lose the awesome memories, and that is what we should cherish forever. My accounting teacher came by our class today to comfort us, and one thing she told me that I really hate, but agree with, is: "Unfortunately, life is the hardest part to live. When you lose someone, you can't just forget about life, because life still goes on."
Maybe my accounting teacher is right. We have to go on because I'm sure my friend would have wanted us to move on. But we don't automatically forget about our loss of a loved one; we carry the precious yet priceless memories with us forever.